Although modern remote sensing by satellites, aircraft and ground sensors is an increasing source of atmospheric data, none of these systems can match the vertical resolution (30 m (98 ft) or less) and altitude coverage (30 km (19 mi)-RRB-
of radiosonde observations, so they remain essential to modern meteorology.
The main ECMWF reanalysis webpage (www.ecmwf.int/research/era) has some information about observations used in ERA - Interim, including a timeline (http://www.ecmwf.int/research/era/do/get/index/29/29?showfile=true) and a complete inventory
of radiosonde observations (http://www.ecmwf.int/research/era/do/get/index/29/28).
Not exact matches
Specifically, the characteristics
of the divergence across the datasets are strongly suggestive that it is an artifact resulting from the data quality
of the surface, satellite and / or
radiosonde observations.
Where can I find the list
of radiosonde station
observations used in ERA - Interim?
I can recall being censored off
of RealClimate for asking Gavin why NOAA still published
radiosonde and satellite
observations since 1948 showing that tropospheric humidity did NOT increase with temperature over the long term if these were wrong.
Variations in global - mean temperature are inferred from three different sets
of measurements: surface
observations, satellite
observations, and
radiosonde observations.
How, for example, does this incident cast doubt on the findings from satellite data,
radiosondes, borehole analysis, glacial melt
observations, sea ice melt, sea level rise, proxy reconstructions, permafrost melt and such like, gathered completely independently
of the CRU?
• the factors that contribute to uncertainties in the trends inferred from three categories
of instrumental measurements — Microwave Sounding Units (MSU) carried aboard National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) satellites,
radiosondes, and surface
observations;
The black curve represents surface temperature, and the colored curves represent the temperature
of the lower to mid-troposphere as inferred from MSU measurements (red) and
radiosonde observations (green).
However, for
radiosonde observations, which are irregularly spaced with large gaps over the oceans (Figure 2.6), global - mean temperature is estimated on the basis
of those stations operating during the season in question.
Using a longer period would made the match
of surface and
radiosonde observation to models much worst in the period before 1979.
Smith, S.A., and A.D. Del Genio, 2001: Analysis
of aircraft,
radiosonde, and radar
observations in cirrus clouds observed during FIRE II: The interactions between environmental structure, turbulence, and cloud microphysical properties.
Updating and improving
radiosonde observations, particularly in regions
of low temperature and humidity.
Satellite
observations provide near - global coverage and thus represent an important source
of information over the oceans, where
radiosonde observations are scarce, and in the upper troposphere, where
radiosonde sensors are often unreliable.
From these daily values the monthly mean zonal wind components were calculated for the levels 70, 50, 40, 30, 20, 15, and 10 hPa and a data set from 1953 to the present was produced by combining the
observations of the three
radiosonde stations Canton Island (closed 1967), Gan / Maledive Islands (closed 1975), and Singapore (data file: qbo.dat).
Another point: the reanalysis datasets are anchored to the
radiosonde network especially where the density
of such
observations is high.
Where there is
radiosonde profiles
of humidity with height, one must consider representativeness or how well the point
observation represents the surrounding environment.
However, the
radiosonde observations have fully earned their reputation as one
of the mainstays
of daily weather forecasting work.
By making radiometer
observations (giving observed IR flux) simultaneously with nearby
radiosonde flights (giving temperature and humidity readings from which Elsasser tables allowed the computation
of calculated fluxes) they showed that: